Save The Best For Last...

Well this has been a long time coming…I haven't blogged in quite a while! Lol! So...here's my final blog of 2011…

It's been a busy few months - lots of rehearsals & performances, making time for friends, and dealing with a lot of stuff at work…WORK - that could be a whole blog in itself! Right now I'm working on my Self Appraisal for my yearly review. Uggh! I hate those things! Can't wait for it to be done…And...I just recently found out that my department is going to go through some major changes in the upcoming months. It will be interesting to see how everything plays out…

I'm also working on Carmina Burana for Oakland Symphony's concert in January…I still have mixed feelings about this piece. I do love O Fortuna & a couple of other movements, but I don't know…some of it just doesn't sit well with me. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it just doesn't "wow"me. A good work to at least sing once, but not one of those pieces I would love to do over and over again…

And of course, with the new year upon us, it's time for me to set my "goals" for 2012…So, in no particular order, here they are:

- Blog more often (lol)
- Continue to handle my finances (debt free - the way to be!), drop some pounds (15 & counting!), and work on my career
- Get back to my cardmaking (people say I could make $$$ with my cards…wait…I have!!!)
- Learn to cook like a boss (hee hee hee, I just love saying that!)
- Spend even more time with friends & family
- Do more volunteering (working at Glide Memorial Church on Thanksgiving was a great experience)
- Do something I've never done before (hummm….)

That's pretty much it! Here's to the end of another year in the life of this Mezzo Soprano! Let's bring on 2012!
I'm ready for what the new year has in store!

Happy New Year everyone! =)

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!

I know…it's been a couple of weeks…what can I say? I'm a busy girl! So here's a quick update of what's been going on the past few weeks…

The 9/11 concert was a huge success! We had over 1,500 people in the audience - YES, in the audience! It was an awesome performance - the Oakland Civic Orchestra did a good job, the soloist were great, & of course my group (the Oakland Symphony Chorus) was amazing! We also had some young singers join us as well. They were from the Pacific Boychoir Academy & they are a talented group of young boys. I'm looking forward to seeing them perform in their own concerts soon!

I've also started rehearsing Carmina Burana with OSC…don't know how I feel about the piece yet. I do enjoy the first movement (O Fortuna) - mostly because I've heard it in many TV commercials, so I'm familiar with it (lol), & there are some other movements that I'm beginning to grow fond of. But the jumping around from Latin to German is, shall I say, interesting…I'm keeping an open mind though!

Last weekend I attended SF Opera's "Opera In the Park" at AT&T Park. They performed their production of Turandot, which was AMAZING! I must admit, the Tenor's version of Nessum Dorma was a little disappointing to me but OMG - Leah Crocetto?!?!?! She was phenomenal as Liu! I was really impressed with her control & I think she showed the most emotion out of all of the characters (a big plus for me!)


Yesterday was OSC's yearly retreat - had an awesome workshop with Susan Witt-Butler on vocal technique & brought me back to the days when I was studying with a voice teacher…Boy do I miss those days! Maybe I'll go back to it soon…I would love to get back in a studio & work on my voice!

Well that's it for now…I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Never Forget...

This Wednesday I have my first rehearsal of the season with the Oakland Symphony Chorus. We've been on summer break & I'm excited to get back into it. I finally get to take a crack at Carmina Burana - one of those "you either like it or don't" type of pieces. I'll let you know if I "like it" or "don't"...

But before that, we get to do some other pretty awesome stuff. In fact, this Sunday we are doing our first public performance of the season...

If you checked your calendar, Sunday is September 11th...and this year marks the 10th anniversary...I still remember that day back in 2001 - I was in college & the new quarter hadn't begun so I was at home, watching all the news coverage on T.V. I think I spent a majority of the day watching it , wondering what was happening & hoping that nothing was going to happen here...

To mark this anniversary, the Oakland Symphony Chorus, along with the Oakland Civic Orchestra, will be performing Mozart's Requiem at the Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland at 5:30PM. Following the concert, there will be a floral tribute & moment of silence at the Cathedral Plaza. The concert is free & if you've sung this piece before, you can bring your score & sing along in the audience with us. I hope you can make this special concert...

So...Come Here Often???

Well, I finally did it…after many months of debating if I should start blogging I decided to bite the bullet and do it. I know quite a few people who are bloggers, so I thought to myself: "If they can do it, I can too!". And after some convincing from from a fellow blogger - Ta Da!

How did I come up with the name "Confessions of a Mezzo"? Well, to begin with, I'm a Mezzo Soprano…I've been a singer ever since I was little, but started started singing classical music & opera almost 20 years ago (that long! wow)…And one of my favorite "girly books"? Confessions of a Shopaholic…Yes, I'm a girly girl…I love fashion, makeup, and can give Martha Stewart a run for her money! But, I also love sports, have dreams of skydiving, and have been known to engage in lively political debate from time to time…

This blog isn't going to be about one specific thing…it's going to be about my life, my interests, and whatever else I feel inclined to entertain you with! So I hope you stick around and take the journey with me - I will do my best to not disappoint!